Town Clerk SCOTT AUBERTINE Supt.

of Highways
KIM WALLACE
PAT WESTON
Councilman
Councilwoman
DONALD BOURQUIN
ANNE HARRIS
Councilman JEFFERSON COUNTY Councilman
DANIEL J. VILLA P.O. Box 66 DAVID HENDERSON
CHAUMONT, NEW YORK 13622
PH: (315) 649-2788 FAX: (315) 649-2049 TID: (202) 7fO-6382
E-Mail: Iymetownclerk@twcny.rr.com
December 14,2012
Honorable Jaclyn A. Brilling ..' ~ -. ,-'-:,-"
~ l ;- -1
Secretary, NYS Board ofElectric Generation Siting and the Environment
3 Empire State Plaza
Albany, New York 122231350
Regarding: 12-F-041 0 Cape Vincent Wind Power
Dear Secretary Brilling:
Please do not override our carefully researched and well thought out Law that will protect
the residents of our community. BP has made no progress in engaging in a dialog with
our Town. Information has not been forthcoming on many of the aspects of this project
that concern our Town. A project of this size will industrialize (the words of a wind
developer) our rural community, devalue our properties, and create a divide in our Town.
This has not only been addressed by this process; it has exacerbated it. Although the
transmission line will divide our entire Town and Lyme will be surrounded by industrial
turbines; there has been little attempt to engage with public officials or our residents. We
also suspect that the initial proposal ofturbines in Cape Vincent, will soon give way to
Phase 2, and those leaseholders in the Town of Lyme will also get turbines on their
property. The tactic of divide and conquer is one the wind developer uses freely. The
Town of Lyme will have industrial wind turbines located just off their boundaries which
in turn will impact property values.
Although initially, the idea of green, clean and free energy from industrial wind turbines
was acceptable, ifnot agreeable to most ofthe residents of Lyme, over the past 6 or 7
years there has been a change of attitude. This was the partially the result ofthe wind
developers own actions, as rumors of the wind development arrived long before there was
any formal contact with the Town of Lyme. There also seemed to be collusion among
the developers, as the area seemed to have been divided among the various companies
before anyone was informed. Secret leases were signed. There was a division in our
small community over the money that was promised. Reports of free electricity, no
taxes, or promises of new fire trucks or other goodies were misleading and caused a rift
between various groups. There was a deliberate effort on the part of the developers to
divide waterfront and year round residents. Even now in various comments to the PSC
there is often a statement, "I am a long term resident," although many of the summer
cottages have been in the same family for generations, and the owners have winterized
and moved into their beloved family home year round. As we all know, the promise of
money is a powerful lure. It makes me wonder how many of the vocal proponents of this
project are solely concerned with the environment, or have a cash stake in the project.
We have a real dilemma in the Town of Lyme. How do we balance the needs of all our
residents? Those who value the rural nature, quiet beauty, the wildlife, including bald
eagles, osprey, owls and bats; the beauty of the stars at night, with those who would
impose the noise, view and blinking lights of industrial wind turbines on the entire
community. Towers of this size cannot be mitigated in our flat landscape, as admitted by
the developers, so they offered money,. The Town commissioned two groups to research
the problem and weigh the benefits with the negatives. The groups were clear in their
results; the negatives outweighed the positives. Guided by these documents, as well as
several different public surveys and hearings, with the assistance of the Jefferson County
Land Use Planning Department, the Town of Lyme passed a Zoning Law to protect the
health and welfare of its citizens.
Now BP and our own State are ignoring the Town of Lyme, our Comprehensive Plan and
our Zoning Law. This is not new, as Lyme has been marginalized in the entire process.
BP is behaving like a poor student as they are doing the minimum to get by and check off
the various requirements of the process. Richard Chandler of BP repeatedly stated in the
first meeting that they would not come where they are not wanted. After each member of
Cape Vincent and Lyme's Town and Planning Boards questioned him, it was made very
clear that BP did not, in fact, have the support ofthe community, however he stubbornly
insisted that he did.
Perhaps you don't care, perhaps you and the other officials on the siting board are simply
doing as BP is, the minimum that is required by law, checking off a box in the steps of a
process that ignores the wishes of the residents of a small community. The wishes of
people, just like you; with homes and families that live in a place they love. People that
have worked tirelessly, for years, to protect their community and neighbors. People that
would like to put this unhappy period of discord behind us and return to working
together, in our fire departments, our school, our community groups, and our Town and
Village to improve the quality of life for all of our residents.
Sincerely,
Town of Lyme, Town Board

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Councilman Donald R. BOUrquin()

Councilwoman Anne Harris


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